The High Court in Lilongwe has ordered the Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) to produce and surrender copies of documents ceased from Cashgate convict and former deputy director for tourism Leonard Kalonga within 72 hours which Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Mary Kachale said has names of beneficiaries of K4.4 billion ($5.8 million) Cashgate proceeds.

Kachale: In the interest of justice

Justice Fiona Mwale made the order after an application from Kachale, who is the joint leading top prosecutor with ACB deputy director general Reyneck Matemba.

The missing document is said to have been found at Kalonga’s house by ACB investigators who searched his house in 2013.

On August 26 last year, the High Court convicted Kalonga on his own plea of guilty for stealing K3.7 billion ($4.9 million) in the ongoing Cashgate trials.

Kachale applied to the court to order the graft-busting body to release documents in the interest of justice .

She told the court that the documents has a distribution list of the looted money and detailing how cashgate was shared.

Judge Mwale ordered the ACB to produce all documents they seized at Karonga’s office or house especially the ones in Blue and purple plastic bag to the court within 72 hours.

“I grant this order under very strict conditions,” said Judge Mwale.

She said the conditions are that ACB should produce the documents “within 72 hours” and that if the bureau doesn’t have the documents the Officer In Charge and Property Control Officer must swear an affidavit to the court within 72 hours and that the two shall be cross examined by both the state and the defence in the court when it resume hearing.

The judge warned that of the order is not respected, the ACB will be “in contempt of court.”

ACB deputy director general Matemba said he was aware of the referred document.

Kalonga’s lawyer Emmanuel Theu said he supported the application.

The case has since been adjourned to Wednesday 22nd June 2016

The shooting on September 13 2013 of then Ministry of Finance budget director Paul Mphwiyo outside the gate of his Area 43 house in Lilongwe led to revelations of the plunder of resources.

Former president Joyce Banda ordered an audit which British forensic auditor, Baker Tilly, undertook covering the period between April and September 2013 and established that about K24 billion ($31.8 million) was siphoned from public coffers through dubious payments, inflated invoices and goods or services not rendered.

In May 2014, a financial analysis report by audit and business advisory firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) also established that about K577 billion ($765.3 million) in public funds could not be reconciliated for the period between 2009 and December 31 2014.